


Let me help

by artgamer12



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Angst to come, Fluff, Idk if I need a trigger warning but I'll put one anyway, M/M, Sadness, Some depression, Triggers, again this just kind if happened, i still don't know what i'm doing, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-30
Updated: 2015-07-30
Packaged: 2018-04-12 01:02:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4459322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artgamer12/pseuds/artgamer12
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aomine is surprised to say the least when Kagami brings Kuroko home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

God, it was so cold out today. Kagami almost wished he had listened to Aomine and worn a scarf, but that would have meant losing that argument. Besides, he was only going to the store, a short walk away, to pick up a few things.

But something about the cold seemed especially brutal today. It wasn't like it was snowing hard or anything; you could only see a few flakes falling now and then. It was just so bitterly _cold_. Kagami decided it was pointless to think about it any longer and let his mind wander to what he needed to pick up at the store.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch. That was top priority. It was both his and Aomine's favorite cereal, and they had run out this morning. He smiled, thinking of the look cashiers always gave Kagami as they scanned several boxes every couple of days. Sometimes there were as many as seven boxes being lugged home. But what were the two of the supposed to do? What better way to deal with being sore from the gym in the mornings than filling up on cinnamon-y goodness?

Kagami was so far lost in his thoughts he almost didn't hear the small cry or see the passing person collapse on the sidewalk beside him.

Quickly, Kagami knelt beside the fallen person. He could see now that it was a frail man.

"Are you okay?" He asked, concerned. The man only gave a weak groan in response.

As Kagami examined the man's face, he noticed they were about the same age. He also noticed that the man's lips were almost the same pale blue as his hair, presumably from the cold.

Kagami knew he needed help, to get out of the cold at the very least.

"Come here, I'll get you somewhere warm," he muttered as he helped the pale-haired man stand. Again, his words were only met with another weak moan. The guy was so weak he couldn't even hold himself upright.

Kagami wrapped his arm around the smaller man's waist. He had to support all of the man's weight, but this wasn't a problem because he was so light. He found himself wondering when the poor guy had eaten last. The red head began to head for home, all but dragging his frail companion along with him.

* * * * *

It didn't take long to get back to the apartment. Kagami opened the door with his free hand, no sooner having stepped inside when he heard Aomine call out.

"You're back already?"

Kagami walked into the living room and laid the now-unconscious man on the couch. He had groaned all the the entire way until about a block from the apartment building, where he actually passed out.

"Yeah, I kinda got distracted by something else," he called back.

"What do you mean 'distracted'? Did you fall and break something? Because that is just about the only excuse I'll take for not having my Toast Crunch—" he walked into the room and stopped in his tracks.

"What the hell Bakami?"

"Look, just go grab some blankets and I'll explain later."

Aomine eyed the male on the couch and walked out again. He returned a moment later with a stack of spare blankets and set them beside his red-headed roommate and took a seat in a cushioned chair a few feet away. He watched as Kagami wrestled to get the man's coat off, which the red-head thought was more difficult than it should have been because it was wet from where he had landed on the slush-covered sidewalk. Then Kagami piled the blankets over him.

"Do I get that explanation now?" Aomine asked. Kagami stepped away from the man on the couch and let out a breath, then gave him a run down on what had happened. When he finished Aomine sighed.

"So no Toast Cunch then, eh?" He grumbled, but Kagami knew he was more concerned about their guest than the cereal.

Kagami joined him then, leaning on the arm of the chair. Aomine leaned forward, his elbow on his knee and his chin resting in his hand, and together they silently watched the frail man. He appeared to be sleeping, and his lips had returned to their normal color.

Or what they assumed to be their normal color. The man was so pale they couldn't decide if it was because of the cold, if he was sick, or if he was just naturally that way. They argued quietly on this for a few minutes just for something to talk about before Kagami decided he couldn't just sit there. Watching the man sleep seemed too stalker-ish.

"I'm hungry," he declared, standing up.

"Me too. What're you making?" Aomine replied lazily.

Kagami thought for a moment. "Soup. Something easy for when he wakes up," he said, nodding at the lump in the blankets on the couch. Usually when Aomine assumed Kagami would be cooking for both of them he would get irritated and throw a smart remark back at him, but today was a little too preoccupied to engage in their usual good-natured bickering.

"Sounds good to me."

Kagami then headed to the kitchen. There wasn't a whole lot he could use since his trip to the store had been put on hold, but he figured that the soup didn't have to be anything fancy. Their guest would just need something warm and easy to eat when he woke up. He began getting ingredients together.

Ten minutes later Kagami was putting the soup on when he heard his roommate call, "Hey Bakami, I think our pal's waking up." He padded into the living room just as the man on the couch's eyes fluttered open. He watched as his bright blue eyes focused and filled with confusion.

"Hey, glad to see you're awake," Aomine said with a smile. The man's eyes followed his voice and fixed themselves on the navy-haired man. He opened his mouth to speak, but only a hoarse croak came out.

"Shit, you're probably thirsty as hell," Kagami realized.

He quickly went back into the kitchen. When he came back with a full glass of water Aomine was helping the man into an upright position. Kagami handed the water to the man and he drained it in a few gulps. He almost looked disappointed when it was gone.

"I'll get some more," Kagami gently took the glass from the man. He returned a moment later with the refilled cup and handed it back. This time their guest took smaller, more careful sips.

"So," Aomine spoke after a moment. "What's your name?"

Light blue eyes met navy ones.

"Kuroko," this was barely more than a whisper.

"Okay, Kuroko, how do you feel?"

"What happened?" Completely disregarding the question, Kuroko's gaze never wavered. His face was a combination of defiance and fear.

Aomine gave a soft chuckle. "I guess I'd better let you take this one, Bakami," he glanced up at the red head.

Pale blue eyes found Kagami's. They were intense and amazingly steady for someone who was so frail. He took a breath and quickly began to relay the story.

"Well, I was walking to the store and you just sort of, um, collapsed." Kuroko cast his eyes down at the glass in his hands. Kagami continued. "And of course I had to check to see if you were okay or not, though it was pretty obvious that you weren't. Okay, I mean," his face became one of confusion. He wondered now why no one else had stopped to help. It wasn't like collapsing people was a norm around this city. "I tried to talk to you, but you weren't exactly in any condition to be having a conversation. So I decided I'd bring you back here and help as best I can," Kagami glanced at Aomine. "As best as _we_ can, I suppose," he corrected himself.

Kuroko's eyes bore into his own for a moment. Kagami could smell the soup as its fragrance swept into the room, reminding him that it needed stirred.

He stood to do so  when he and Aomine were startled by a guttural noise of a stomach growling coming Kuroko. The small man visibly stiffened but didn't raise his head from he had let it hang again. Kagami and Aomine exchanged a glance.

"Um, I made soup," Kagami said, "It should be just about done." No response.

Aomine joined him as he headed to the kitchen. Kagami finished the soup and poured a bowl for Kuroko. Aomine followed him as he brought the bowl into the living room. Crouching in front of the pale haired man he silently held the bowl outstretched between them.

Kuroko peered at him through bangs that were hiding his pale face. Slowly, he raised his head and carefully took the bowl. As Kagami stood he remembered something.

"Oh, by the way, my name's Kagami, and that's Aomine," he pointed with his thumb to where the navy-haired man was leaning on the door frame to the kitchen. He gave a short wave in greeting. When Kagami returned his attention to Kuroko he smiled. "Nice to meet you, Kuroko."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagami and Aomine try to learn more about Kuroko's situation, but Kuroko freaks out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This gets a bit angsty, so sorry:/

Kuroko's eyes stayed on the doorway after the two men had passed through. He wasn't sure what he was expecting really. Maybe for them to come in again, take the food, and kick him back out on the streets. Why not? It's not like they were gaining anything from helping him.

But Kuroko thought about the smile the red haired one, Kagami, had given him. It had seemed completely genuine.

He wondered what that meant.

Kuroko could hear the sound of the two in the kitchen chatting, reminding him that he had food he could actually eat. Having the water beforehand had cleared his head enough so he was somewhat able to control himself and eat at a reasonable pace. The soup tasted amazing, though Kuroko wasn't sure if that was because it really was so good or if it was because it had been so long since he's had a proper meal. Once it was gone, he looked around, observing everything in the room.

It was messy, but not excessively so. It had a sort of homey feel to it. Not too clean that it didn't feel lived in and not so unkempt that it felt like a dump. There were a few shirts and jackets draped here and there, some dishes that still needed to be returned to the kitchen, wrappers from protein bars, and things like that. In front of the television stand Kuroko could see haphazard piles of movies, mostly action it seemed. Among them there were Xbox games like, was that Call of Duty? He couldn't see from where he sat. Near these, there were two controllers for the system. The ceiling was of normal height by Kuroko's standards, but he figured that the apartment's two regular inhabitants could touch it by simply reaching a hand up.

The couch he sat on was cream colored. It was pretty worn from use, but Kuroko guessed that it was definitely nicer than average. Not that he had seen a whole lot of couches recently, so he couldn't really be sure. But this had him wondering what Kagami and Aomine did for a living. He had just begun to ponder this when the two walked in the room. Kuroko briefly assessed their builds. Probably personal trainers or something.

"How're you feeling?" Kagami asked.

"Better," Kuroko replied quietly. "Thank you for the food."

"No problem," he said as he sat in the same chair Aomine had been in earlier.

"So Kuroko," Aomine spoke up. He sat on the other end of the couch, putting one knee up so he could rest his arm on it. "Do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"

 _No_.

"We just want to get a handle on the situation."

Oh _no_.

"Okay," Kuroko said, trying to keep the waver out of his voice. He didn't know if they could tell that his breathing had quickened slightly. He hoped not.

"Cool. Okay, so first, do you remember anything? Like from right before you collapsed?" Aomine continued.

 _Yes_ , Kuroko thought.

He could remember stumbling along. He could barely see because he couldn't get his eyes to focus. The hunger had become a constant thing by that point, an ache in his belly that he found he still wasn't able to ignore. It had taken every ounce of his concentration and willpower to keep moving. He wasn't entirely sure why he had insisted on moving forward. It wasn't like anyone was paying him any attention, and certainly no one was stopping to help him. Realization had hit him hard as he began to understand how hopeless his situation was. Kuroko remembered feeling his foot catch on the concrete. He remembered not being able to move his limbs anymore, they had become limp and useless, so he had let himself fall.

 _Please_ , he remembered thinking, as shivers racked his body. _Let this end. Let me die here_.

He remembered the way the cold and hunger and helplessness washed over him. Had he cried? He didn't know. He couldn't imagine having been able to muster the energy to cry. Kuroko remembered hearing a voice, but it had sounded a million miles away. He remembered being lifted and held against something warm before passing out, but it had felt like it was someone else's body being jostled around, not his.

But instead of saying any of this, Kuroko shook his head.

"What about anything before that?" Aomine pressed.

Again, Kuroko only shook his head. Maybe it would be better if they the thought he had amnesia or something. He noticed a quick exchange of glances between Aomine and Kagami. Kagami cleared his throat before asking the next question.

"Do you remember the reason why you were out on the streets in the first place?" He spoke softly, as if he knew how delicate of a question this was.

Kuroko froze. He desperately shoved the memory down as it struggled to replay in his head. He would not relive that ever again, not if he could help it. He could feel himself shaking, panicking, trying and trying to calm himself. He tried to take deep breaths, but they were only coming short and shallow now. He couldn't see anymore, his eyes were fixed on something that wasn't in front of him, but in his head. No, he was going back to that place—

" _Hey_."

Kuroko's head snapped up. He found himself staring into Kagami's eyes. The red head had risen from the chair, alarmed by Kuroko's sudden show of emotion.

"Kuroko?" He found he couldn't say anything around the lump that was forming in his throat. Quickly, Kagami closed the distance to the couch and squatted in front of him. He tried to mentally root himself to the man's face in an attempt to keep the terrible images away.

"Hey, it's okay," Kagami said gently, placing a hand on Kuroko's knee. Kuroko could feel the warmth of Aomine's hand on his shoulder a moment later.

Kuroko looked between the both of them, their faces kind. He felt the tears that had been welling up spill over and run down his face in hot streams. He let his head fall into his hands as they sat there together.

The only sounds were of Kuroko's quiet sobs and the soft murmurs from Kagami and Aomine as they did their best to comfort him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I ended up finishing this later than I thought I would and its a bit shorter that I had hoped, but here it is!! Thanks so much to all of you wonderful people who have read and left kudos here!


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